In the northern Jordan Valley communities of Bardala, Kardala and Ein el Beida, where over 90% of people rely on agriculture as their primary source of livelihood, farmers have been facing increasing difficulty in farming their lands due to political problems and the effects of climate change. After identifying movement restrictions as the main obstacle in securing their livelihoods, CARE, ARIJ and ESDC assisted three community based organizations in the area to create a nursery to propagate vegetable seedlings.

Summary:

The Jordan Valley is one of the Palestinian agro-eco regions in which a considerable portion of irrigated vegetables and fruits are produced in the West Bank. Three key communities in the north of the Jordan Valley, Bardala, Kardala and Ein el Beida, have a total population of 4,022 (667 households) farming 12,000 dunums (12 square kilometres). More than 90% of the people in these communities rely on agriculture as their primary source of livelihood, and have farmed this area for generations.

However, over the past years, farmers have been facing increasing difficulty in farming their land due to political problems and the effects of climate change including drought, water shortages, flood and frost.

Due to Israeli military checkpoints and closures, the livelihood of these farmers has sharply deteriorated as the cost of accessing inputs and markets have greatly increased. This isolation has left the people of these communities as some of the most vulnerable people in the West Bank.

CARE, ARIJ and ESDC representatives met with farmers and their representatives from these three communities in the north Jordan Valley to assess and prioritize their needs. Meetings with key stakeholders identified the need for a nursery to propagate vegetables seedlings as a top priority – and so the infrastructure was funded as one of the activities under the TATWEER project. The nursery is run by a management committee consisting of three CBO-elected representatives who ensure the nursery addresses community needs and makes efficient use of limited human and financial resources.

The movement restrictions were identified by farmers as a main obstacle in securing their livelihoods, and all beneficiaries interviewed agreed that the nursery successfully addressed this issue in regards to accessing seedlings.